The purpose of this thread is to inform potential players of some few, but very important, IMO, facets that should be considered during the creation of a Mage character. as each of you have a personal Creation thread, we can discuss the points brought up here in those, but feel free to post here if there's something i've maybe overlooked or described unsuccessfully. In an effort to consolidate all this information for future use, I will most likely edit this post when a new subject comes up, but will inform of the updates further down in the thread. Most of these things that will be brought up here are things that you've undoubtedly considered during the creation process, but never thought to formally put in writing. So, without further ramblings;

Avatar

Every Mage has one, whether they realize it or not. And just because a Mage knows about Avatars doesn't necessarily mean he's seen his own. Consider your Avatar, whether you've got points in the Background or not. The connection between a Mage and his Avatar can grow or regress over time, and some Masters, especially in the Akashic Brotherhood and Eastern-influenced Euthanatos believe that Ascension comes, not from an understanding of Spheres and Magickal prowess, but a 'One-ness' of Mage and Avatar as a whole entity.

The Avatar's Essence, while not directly linked to Tradition or Paradigm in any way, defines as much about the Mage as either of those two things. The Avatar's Essence most often either coincides, or is in direct opposition to, the Awakened Sleeper's disposition.

Questions to consider concerning the Avatar;

- Has the Mage had no contact with the Avatar, or are they on speaking terms already?

- Does the Essence of the Avatar compete with the Mage's sensibilities?

- What form, if any, does the Avatar take?

Remember, the Mage need not know all this information in game. In fact, most newly Awakened have very little contact with their Avatars. Having points in the Avatar background represents the connection, yes, but not necessarily an active awareness of another entity.